Ball Fever: Mile High Madness time

Another fun and exciting season is in the books, hoops fans. Our final two weeks were full of overtime excitement, individual “monsta” performances, and leagues that came down to the wire.

Let’s hope it is a sign of what’s to come over the next few weeks!

There is NO PERFECT ANSWER regarding the final 5A and 4A RPI standings/seedings but thankfully our awesome athletes don’t play this “Mile High Madness” out on the internet…it will be settled on the hardwood!

Those who follow Ball Fever also know we don’t think this is a rare time for Colorado hoops, but a result of numerous factors leading to good basketball being played on our high school courts. The buzz about Colorado hoops is legit and we can thank a growing basketball community for that from our peewee rec leagues to competitive club ball, increasing individual personal training opportunities, and truly dedicated high school staffs. The basketball product hitting the Colorado hardwood is improving and colleges of all levels are taking notice!

Great time to be a part of Colorado hoops … let’s get to the Madness!

5A Bracket
Chauncey Billups Region
Our defending 5A champ ThunderRidge returns as the overall top seed of the tournament after only one in-state loss. The Continental League was the cream of the crop this season, and this region has Continental squads in Heritage and especially Mountain Vista who are capable of surprising anyone in a single elimination game setting.

FAVORITES:
ThunderRidge is clearly the top dog here in the Billups region. They have veterans who know what it takes to advance and easily have one of the strongest coaching staffs in the business. Big man Zach Keller, Wake Forest commit, is a “double-double” machine capable of putting the Grizzlies on his shoulders and a supporting cast hungry to go back to back!

WATCH OUT FOR:
We mentioned this “Continental” heavy region and if there’s a squad capable of upset type action it is Rock Canyon who’s in at the No. 9 seed. Another “battle tested” squad is Centennial tough Overland, and a possible Round 2 Centennial/Continental Overland vs. Mountain Vista match would be a ton of fun. Some fun possible match ups here but the Fever Crew sees ThunderRidge advancing when the smoke clears.

Chuck WIlliams Region
Only one squad who could make an argument they could have been the overall No. 1 seed and that’s Fossil Ridge who comes in No. 2 with a 22-1 overall record. The Sabercats only loss was in early season tournament play vs. the top seed Grizzlies and there’s certainly no shame in that. Whoever wants to keep up with the Sabercats in this region better be able to put up some points to match their 72 point per game average!

FAVORITES:
The bottom half of this region has two teams that exceeded expectations in the regular season in Horizon and Regis. Horizon ended the season with an outstanding 19-3 regular season record and we see that momentum carrying them to a possible tangle with Fossil Ridge. The Sabercats are our favorite here due to that senior guard play of Brock Mishak and his 20 points per game.

WATCH OUT FOR:
The Fever Crew got a chance to see a Montbello (FNE Warriors) crew recently and they have seven seniors who will not want to go down easily. Our Fever Crew prediction is the “Bellos” getting an upset win in Round 1 and will be a fun test for Horizon Round 2.  You’ll be hard pressed to find a more well coached squad than Coach Shaw’s Raiders, and with time to prepare they are capable of advancing. Regis’ signature win was over No. 4 Denver East in the Angels gym, so when they’re on they can compete with the best.

Larry Farmer Region
Continental and Centennial leagues again well represented in this region as well! Chaparral coming in as the overall 3-seed on an 8-game win streak and ranked No. 3 in our final Coaches Poll. Not to be outdone, Eaglecrest is a tough 6-seed on a 12 game win streak and are Centennial League champs!

FAVORITES:
We’ve mentioned how the Fever Crew loves late season guard play and senior Luke Williams is as steady as they come for Chaparral “stat-stuffin” 16 points, 4 assists, and 6 rebounds per game on the season!  The inside/out action of Williams and big man Joel Speckman make the Wolverines our fav here!

WATCH OUT FOR:
Smoky Hill “flirted” with our Top 10 Coaches Poll all season and finished ranked No. 10. As the overall 11-seed in this Region they are in a prime spot to advance and cause anyone trouble. The human highlight film known as Anthony Harris Jr. will be playing above the rim and is worth the price of admission alongside smooth senior guard Brandon Maldonado. In order to make some noise in this region, however, Smoky will potentially face a third match of the season against Eaglecrest, who they split the regular season with. In Centennial play, both teams won their home games vs. the other. Come on, let’s split that tie!

Kent Smith Region
The higher seeds jump right out at you in this region as well with Denver East fresh off an exciting “city championship” 3-point win over George Washington Saturday. Douglas County jumped up to No. 5 in our final Coaches Poll, sport only 2 Continental league losses, and are a stellar 19-3 on the season.

FAVORITES:
On paper, this leans toward the obvious higher seeds on on a collision course. The Angels are not just carrying the torch for Denver East but one of the few schools still alive for the Denver Prep League. A pressure that Coach Carey and the Angels welcome, we’re sure! The Angels aren’t afraid to get up and down with a fast pace vs. anyone and if we get that possible match with Douglas County it will be high scoring as both average over 70 points per game!

WATCH OUT FOR:
Cherry Creek has the potential to advance in Round 1 and give us an intriguing Bruins at Raiders match up in Round 2. Rangeview has not been ranked this season like we are all accustomed to but they once again are EMAC Champions and will be eager to prove they shouldn’t be written off so quickly. Also, Denver South “rep’n” for the Denver Prep League but they cannot take a tough Legend team lightly in Round 1. The Titans are capable of ruining a Denver South/East rematch!

4A Bracket
Ron Vlasin Region
Lewis-Palmer comes in as the overall 1-Seed in 4A. The Rangers have an absolute resume to be proud of sporting a 12-game win streak, finishing our Coaches Poll at No. 2, and their only loss of the season came in a tight game with 5A No. 3 Chaparral.

FAVORITES:
Longmont and Windsor are VERY familiar with each other and Longmont just claimed a 12-point League tourney win over Windsor to close out the Regular season. We see one of these two having a shot at challenging top dog Lewis-Palmer.

WATCH OUT FOR:
We have another “stat-stuffer” in Longmont’s “do it all” Brandon Barcewski. At 6’5 scoring 17 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals per game. Stand out performance is nothing new to him and will be needed if we eventually get Longmont’s shot at top seed Lewis-Palmer and 6’5 senior Cameron Lowe, who is coming in averaging 17 points per game of his own.

Larry Brunson Region
After finishing the regular season 23-0, the Pueblo South Colts enter as the overall 2 seed.This scoring machine has all the motivation going into the post season to settle things on the court.

FAVORITES:
Pueblo South is the hottest team in the state, regardless of class, and they put on a show! The Austin brothers, led by senior Tarrance, help push the torrid pace for the Colts and no one will keep up with their 80 points per game, in our humble Fever opinion.

WATCH OUT FOR:
Centaurus, 18-5 on the season, finished our final coaches poll at No. 7 and a 2-game win streak. The Warriors play at a 50-point per game pace so they won’t be looking to run away from squads, but rather wear them down with 4 seniors averaging at least 7 points per game on the season.

Guy Gibbs Region
This region is solid and touts the defending 4A state champ in Mead, 18-4 Frederick, and a “city” hopeful in Thomas Jefferson that played their final Prep League opponents very tough.

FAVORITES:  
Point guard play you say? Look no further than Elijah Knudsen who is the best shooter in our state averaging 19 points per game, and he has a nice inside/out advantage many PG’s don’t have in fellow senior 7’0 James Shiers. The only 4A team that Mead has lost to is that tough Longmont squad previously mentioned. The Mavs are battled tested and will give their all for a repeat.

WATCH OUT FOR:
Armon Baker is an exciting play maker for Thomas Jefferson who leads his squad in numerous statistical categories and he’s only a junior! The Spartans will play with a fire but the depth and experience of Mead is just too much in this region.

Richard Tate Region
A lot of balance in our higher seeds here in the final 4A Region. An undefeated squad along with three other teams that landed in our final 4A Coaches Poll will make this a ton of fun to follow.

FAVORITES:
This team is a mystery to many simply due to geography but 23-0 speaks volumes for the overall 4-seed Montrose. Many will wonder if they’ve been tested “out west” and that has been often. They have won 20 of their 23 wins by DOUBLE DIGITS…many games by 20 or more!

WATCH OUT FOR:
This is an easy one! Kadyn Betts and Pueblo Central finish our final Coaches Poll as No. 5 and just happen to be the 5^th overall seed in 4A. Betts is a “double-double” machine averaging over 20 points and 12 rebounds per outing and he has the ability to put the squad on his back if needed. A Division-I NCAA caliber player that will be worth a “Watch Out For” look!

Sheesh! Here we go folks. Some dreams will come true and some hearts will be broken but it’s why we love the passion of competition and sport. Get out and enjoy your neighborhood school, city, or just hoops in general. Always, 72 & Sunny in the gym #BallFever